Callais Backlash: The South Votes to Escape the Past
Alan Elrod's article argues that after the Supreme Court's Callais decision demolished the Voting Rights Act and Southern states diluted Black districts, the November 2026 midterms delivered a backlash: Democrats took Senate seats in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Texas and swept Texas statewide races, with Black voters organizing against the maps. He reports Mississippi swung 23 points left, Scott Colom flipped Forrest County and looks set to become the first Black senator from Mississippi since Reconstruction, and says the South's pro-democracy voters delivered a resounding message that the region wants to move forward.
